The World of Extreme Happiness

by Frances Ya-Chu Cowhig

When Sunny is born in a rural vilage on the Yangtze River, her parents dump her in a slop bucket and leave her to die because she isn't a boy. Sunny survives, and at 14 leaves home for a Shenzhen factory to fund her brother's education. There she works grueling shifts cleaning toilets and dreams of promotion. Desperate to maximize her only capital--her youth--Sunny attends self-help classes and learns ways to...

When Sunny is born in a rural vilage on the Yangtze River, her parents dump her in a slop bucket and leave her to die because she isn't a boy. Sunny survives, and at 14 leaves home for a Shenzhen factory to fund her brother's education. There she works grueling shifts cleaning toilets and dreams of promotion. Desperate to maximize her only capital--her youth--Sunny attends self-help classes and learns ways to improve her chances at securing a coveted office position. But when her dogged attempts to pull herself out of poverty hurt a fellow worker, Sunny begins to question the design of a system she has spent her life trying to master, and starts to fight for an alternative.

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The World of Extreme Happiness

Recommended by

  • Cora Turlish: The World of Extreme Happiness by Frances Ya-Chu Cowhig
    “

    I was fortunate to see the Manhattan Theatre Club production; re-reading the script now, the humor and ultimate devastation of the play is just as vivid.

    I was fortunate to see the Manhattan Theatre Club production; re-reading the script now, the humor and ultimate devastation of the play is just as vivid.

    ”
  • Matt Pelfrey: The World of Extreme Happiness by Frances Ya-Chu Cowhig
    “

    This is a fearless play. Frances Ya-Chu Cowhig constantly shocks you with her choices, refusing to pander or soften her vision for the comfort of the audience. Fantastic on every level.

    This is a fearless play. Frances Ya-Chu Cowhig constantly shocks you with her choices, refusing to pander or soften her vision for the comfort of the audience. Fantastic on every level.

    ”
  • Asian American Theater Project: The World of Extreme Happiness by Frances Ya-Chu Cowhig
    “

    The Stanford Asian American Theater Project had the honor of producing Frances Ya-Chu Cowhig’s “The World of Extreme Happiness” as part of our 2017–2018 season. We found this show a nuanced exploration of the mass urbanization happening in modern China—Cowhig uses a distinct writing voice and mastery of form to interrogate this phenomenon. Our audiences resonated with protagonist Sunny Li’s struggle to reconcile the ethics of her megacorp job with her desire to financially support her family. Gripping, funny, and dark, “The World of Extreme Happiness” is a sharp indictment of modern capitalism...

    The Stanford Asian American Theater Project had the honor of producing Frances Ya-Chu Cowhig’s “The World of Extreme Happiness” as part of our 2017–2018 season. We found this show a nuanced exploration of the mass urbanization happening in modern China—Cowhig uses a distinct writing voice and mastery of form to interrogate this phenomenon. Our audiences resonated with protagonist Sunny Li’s struggle to reconcile the ethics of her megacorp job with her desire to financially support her family. Gripping, funny, and dark, “The World of Extreme Happiness” is a sharp indictment of modern capitalism.

    read more
    ”
View all 4 recommendations

Production History

  • Professional, Manhattan Theatre Club, 2015
  • Professional, Goodman Theatre, 2014
  • Professional, National Theatre, 2013